tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67379349697941939052016-02-06T11:13:20.176-05:00Untrained GourmetI love to cook, but I've never been to school. Because it's apparently good enough, here's a little diary of some of my culinary adventures, none of which require difficult techniques or fancy equipment.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-49363952456809944872010-03-03T22:47:00.003-05:002010-03-03T23:44:01.533-05:00Writing about food for Examiner.com 2 - Does it pay?This is Part Two of a multi-part series of posts about writing about food and drink on Examiner.com, where I write as the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a> and the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-39092-Knoxville-Coffee-Examiner">Knoxville Coffee Examiner</a>. For <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2010/03/writing-about-food-for-examinercom-1.html">Writing about food and drink for Examiner.com Part One: How it works, click here</a>.<br /><br />In my <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2010/03/writing-about-food-for-examinercom-1.html">last post</a>, I detailed how writing for the online magazine <a href="http://www.examiner.com">Examiner.com</a> works, and I also mentioned some rather tempting information about the potential pay that some Examiners prove is possible to be earning on the site. In fact, there is evidence floating around out there that some Examiners have made four figures per month writing for the site. Here's the seeming truth behind how that might be going down:<br /><ol><li>They write about celebrity bullshit that people shouldn't care about but eat up like it's something I cooked;</li><li>They watch Google Trends and pick the top-searched celebs to pour out info about, some of which may be suspect;<br /></li><li>They post "news articles" on those topics, many of which are simply rehashes of the most popular links on Google concerning about a dozen times a day and publish them as news, which Examiner.com gets fed into Google's news reel rather efficiently.</li><li>They market the crap out of what they write on their Twitter accounts using all kinds of clever tricks and apps.<br /></li></ol>These four suppositions are based upon my memory of seeing the evidence I referred to (but cannot seem to quickly find again at the moment), and, if you're quick and relatively good, they could be a guideline on how to actually make money on Examiner.com.<br /><br />Wait... ouch... "actually make money?" That's harsh.<br /><br />Well, perhaps it's not warranted. There are some very web-savvy writers that produce expert-quality, solid content on their niche areas on Examiner.com that are doing fine without selling out hard to the celebrity path to riding several someones' coattails to relatively illegitimately earned internet cash. Those people seem to be making in the two-figures-per-day pay range, at least from what I have guesstimated (and having a Ph.D. in math makes me a pretty good guesstimator, most of the time). Two figures per day of nearly passive income isn't bad. It's something like $3-10k a year for what, at least on the front lines, is only a few hours of work a week. It won't pay off your house, but it actually could keep up with your mortgage if you're in the mid-to-high end of that range.<br /><br />How do they do it? I wish I knew.<br /><br />Maybe I overestimate my content (see <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Gourmet Food here</a> and <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-39092-Knoxville-Coffee-Examiner">Coffee here</a>), but I know I'm no slouch in the writing department (though some folks that outperform me from time to time are, a bit to my chagrin). As of the time of this writing, here's what typical (and atypical) Examiner.com numbers look like for me:<br /><ul><li>Total subscribers: 15 (food), 2 (coffee);</li><li>Number of articles: 102 (food), 5 (coffee);</li><li>Been writing since: 30 Nov 2009 (food), last week (coffee);<br /></li><li>Typical daily performance earnings: $1.20-1.50 (food), $0.10 (coffee);</li><li>Record daily performance earnings: ~$10 (food), $0.25 (coffee);</li><li>Typical number of new articles per week: 4-5 (food), 2-3 (coffee);</li><li>Overall typical number of incentive dollars per week: ~$8;<br /></li><li>Typical time spent on one article: ~30 minutes (both).</li><li>Overall earnings last month: $60-70 (because of their reporting mechanism, I can't say for sure until I'm paid later in the month).</li><li>Overall time spent per month (just writing): ~15 hours.</li><li>Overall time spent per month (including promotion): ~25 hours</li><li>Typical income per article (now): ~$1.75+$1=~$2.75 (sadly competitive with other by-hire online freelancing gigs), but woefully<br /></li></ul>While this has put a few bucks in my bank account that wouldn't be there otherwise (I can just hear my mom saying, "That's about a hundred and forty dollars (total time writing for them) you wouldn't have had otherwise!"), the average is working out to be that I'm making a little over $2 an hour in performance pay for my time writing for Examiner.com, or make that about $4 if you throw in the local incentives, but under $3 an hour again if you count promotional time. Those wages aren't too bad for a guy with a Ph.D. in math, right? Oh wait... shit... they are. Sure, $140 might seem like a lot, considering, but by the hour, given my degree, etc. that's not. It's nary a drop in the bucket.<br /><br />So, why do I do it? A few reasons: (1) it's kind of fun; (2) I like to share/teach; (3) I wouldn't mind getting "discovered" and thereby make some real cash off of this, and Examiner.com is better for getting discovered than cooking quietly in my kitchen and mumbling about it on Facebook from time to time; and (4) I'd like to believe my pay could go up at some point.<br /><br />So... has my pay gone up? Let's just use the Knoxville Gourmet Food gig for now since the coffee deal is too fledgling to know any different yet. Here's what my daily readership has done, in a nutshell, since I joined:<br /><ul><li>Month #1: Steadily increased (roughly linearly) from bubkus to about 70 page views per day;</li><li>Month #2: Steadily increased (roughly linearly) from about 70 page views per day to about 120-150 page views per day;</li><li>Month #3: Except one day when one article went nuts on StumbleUpon and got over 800 hits in a single day, it's been level + noise since then (<a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Homemade-chicken-noodle-soup-completely-from-scratch">This is the article, about chicken noodle soup</a>, originally posted <span style="font-style: italic;">on this blog</span>, that went nuts on Wednesday, February 3. Feel free to click on it and Stumble it to get that ball rolling again or something. That was awesome.).</li></ul>So, that has me wondering... what's different?<br /><br />Well, I went balls-to-the-walls publishing articles up until about six weeks ago, at which point my daily readership seemed to be going steadily up, more or less linearly. It had to be annoying to my subscribers (in fact, I know it was because my subscriber numbers actually dwindled during that time). Since, I've leveled off more nearly to the recommended publishing schedule of about 3-5 articles a week, and my daily performance pay leveled off just as quickly. But wait....<br /><br />It seemed to me, hence the balls-to-the-walls publishing coming out of the gate, that overall performance earnings, given relatively constant quality (not really reasonable... I'd say it's gone up, at least in terms of my ability to write for the web), should be [dork warning] <span style="font-style: italic;">directly proportional</span> to article count. Tips I received from other seasoned (and popular) Food and Drink Channel Examiners strongly backed this theory, only without numbers to confirm it. Month 3 suggests strongly to me that such isn't so, however. So... what's the deal?<br /><br />According to an <a href="http://20smoney.com/2009/09/08/examiner-com-experiment-update/">interesting Examiner.com writing experiment on 20sMoney</a>, the reason is simply that older articles on Examiner.com may lose their visibility over time (due to how they index (rather poorly) with Google), cutting into the potential performance pay that those articles could generate, i.e. Examiner.com's performance pay might not really be that great a form of passive income, despite its highly competitive rate. Why? I'm with their guess: they do well in the searches because of sheer volume initially, but there's so much underqualified stuff floating around in the Examiner.com juggernaut of articles published each day that there is substantially good reason for Google to try to keep a passive lid on how much traffic they receive over time. I'm not saying that Examiner.com's approach is a bad one -- I can't think of a great way to ensure consistently high quality in the format they do across so broad a spectrum of topics with such a strong local initiative -- but that any punishment it sees in search-engine visibility is probably somewhat justified.<br /><br />From where I sit, then, there really needs to be a call for more <span style="font-style: italic;">qualified</span> Examiners to take up the mantle and start elevating the overall image of the site. With stronger credibility and a unique and effective vision, it could become a real media powerhouse without selling out to the Big-Media corporate voice that looms over seemingly most of what we see and read out there.<br /><br />Of course... then there are the highly successful folks (firmly planted in the two-digits-per-day range) that make me wonder what it is that I'm missing. I have it on authority that some of the articles that some of these wonderful people wrote last year netted over $1000 for the single article (and is still getting lots of residual attention). That's some decent freelancer pay even for a well-researched, carefully designed and presented article sold to a major publication. So... it is possible to do well.<br /><br />To close, since some aspiring Examiners might have a sour or bitter taste in their mouths after reading my disclosure of my position so far, I will take heart in that I've only been cultivating relationships and readership on Examiner.com for about three months. Many of the heavy hitters have been at it nearly since Examiner.com got started almost three years ago, which gives them a firm position to have made friendships and networking relationships on the site, which are, of course, for any blogger or journalist, the equivalent of manna. This article will likely need some updating three months from now to see if these Month #3 doldrums find a fair trade wind blowing through them at some point down the road, but the current lack of growth is a bit disturbing.<br /><br />Stay tuned for more articles in this vein, but you can get started by seeing the original here: <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2010/03/writing-about-food-for-examinercom-1.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Writing about food and Drink for Examiner.com Part 1: How it Works</span></a>. This text right here will soon be replaced by links to later articles in the series; thanks for your patience.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-44364173767049423542010-03-03T17:10:00.006-05:002010-03-03T23:46:35.998-05:00Writing about food for Examiner.com 1 -- How it worksSo, I haven't been too faithful about keeping this up. I find that writing about food but not talking much about the food itself is unsatisfying and kind of pointless. Still, as long as I'm writing about food for Examiner.com, I don't think I'm going to write much about food here, save to plant links to those Examiner articles, some of which, if I do say so myself, are quite nice and contain delicious recipes.<br /><br />Instead, I think, at least for a while, I'll write about writing about food, specifically about writing about food for Examiner.com. This post will be the first in a series about my experience so far with Examiner, pulling essentially no punches on them and being as fair as is possible.<br /><br />For those who don't know, <a href="http://www.examiner.com/">Examiner.com</a> is an online magazine of sorts, and its writers are independent contractors that get paid competitive wages (*more on this below*) for writing about any topic within their expertise once they're hired as an Examiner. The application process is easy: go to the website, sign up to write for them, list referrals (like me, see links below to my Examiner titles if you feel this article sways your interests toward writing for them enough to contact me so that I can properly refer you), write a short piece, give them a little bio and a profile pic, and wait a little while. <span style="font-weight: bold;">As a tip if you apply to write for Examiner, keep that little piece via some version of copy and paste since you'll likely want to submit something you think is good, and you'll never see it again after the application</span>. Keep your bio info too because there's an oddly good chance you'll have to submit it again and won't have access to whatever you spent time thinking up in the first place.<br /><br />About those "competitive wages," they come in two forms, depending on your title. Everyone with Examiner.com starts as a <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">local Examiner</span></span>, which means that they're tied to and associated with the local area they apply to write for, usually the one they live in. Examiner pushes hard on an "<span style="font-style: italic;">everything local</span>" initiative, and so local Examiners are expected to write about locally relevant content, although this can simply mean pointing a reader toward local resources for gathering more information or relevant stuff (like ingredients) to the article. In that, Examiner.com offers its local Examiners a "local incentive," via its "Rules of the Road," a short list of content rules that essentially boil down to putting a local spin on every article. That incentive is $1 per article for up to 5 articles per week (for a maximum of about $260 a year in local incentive pay, which is on top of "performance pay," by page views). That is about to double for <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">sponsored local Examiners</span></span>, which means local Examiners that are sponsored by some (local?) business.<br /><br />In addition to "local incentives," Examiner.com pays everyone, including its more topical National Examiners, performance pay that works out to what seems to be about just shy of a cent per page view, taking into account a variety of factors that are kind of like a trade secret -- you never find out how they work, probably to help prevent you from gaming the system. Having subscribers (which means signing up for a free, no-spam e-mail alert system or RSS), however, seems to be more valuable than just random visitors, and apparently the time on site that a reader spends and click-through rate have something to do with it as well.<br /><br />The other pay opportunities are recruitment tools and are pushed really heavily, and ostensibly very successfully: $50 per new Examiner referred and per new sponsor referred to the growing media network. It's possible to make some serious cash that way if you can talk a lot of people into getting on there to share their knowledge, but so far in my experience, people seem leery about signing up to write for them (more on that in the future too). The referral thing must work, though, because in three months I've written for Examiner.com so far, at least 7,500 new Examiner ID numbers have been given out, presumably one to each new Examiner writing on the site.<br /><br />As for writing, the advanced editor they provide works very much like a blogging interface, so if you can work something like Blogger, you can definitely handle the Examiner editor. The basic editor is even easier to use and produces uniform but consistently nice articles that are relatively well laid out.<br /><br />Examiner prefers its writers to publish 3-5 articles per week and requires at least one per month, but since they emphasize short, easy-to-read, attention-span-lacking articles (because of their success on the attention-span-lacking internet audience), it is certainly realistic to expect that articles can take between 10 minutes and an hour to complete, if you really want to spend an hour working on them. Personally, I believe in content, so I spend about 30-40 minutes on my articles, but I usually don't even bother proofreading them -- sure, quality counts, especially if you want to get "noticed," but I don't currently make enough money from Examiner on a per-article basis to justify the extra time. Besides, much to Examiner.com's detriment on the whole, most of the content on the site is utter crap -- poorly written, first-person, copy-paste, opinion-ridden, drivel that really should see some more editorial oversight. On the other hand, since each Examiner might be a rocking expert in their field, some of the content is <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-7386-Knoxville-Healthy-Food-Examiner">absolutely top-notch</a> and worth looking at and bookmarking, particularly some of the very creative, very successful recipes on there.<br /><br />As for how the money works out... well, I'll go into super detail about that in a later post, but some Examiners literally make thousands of dollars a month just via performance pay. I don't think most of them write about food and drink, but on the other hand, some of the top Examiners in food and drink are getting at least <span style="font-style: italic;">thousands</span> of page views per day, which comes out to possibly $10-50+ a day in relatively passive income at the low requirement of what amounts to probably about 2-3 hours a week <span style="font-style: italic;">writing time</span> (which doesn't include marketing, promoting, or researching time). While this sounds highly enticing, I have absolutely no idea how to achieve numbers like that (again, more on that aspect later!) and don't come anything close to it yet. Then again, I apparently have absolutely no idea how the hell social networking plays a role in advertising except that I post many of my articles on my Facebook page and get a very modest number of clicks from that source (I currently consider my experiment with Twitter to have failed... I still can't get into that crap). I'm routinely in the top five Examiners in my local network (Knoxville, TN), however, which given my rather low readership is quite, quite the scary commentary on overall traffic to and through the site.<br /><br />If you're interested in seeing what I've put on Examiner.com so far, I currently hold two local Examiner positions, the former vastly more successful than the latter (which is new but seems not to be growing very quickly):<br /><ol><li><a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner (x-31650)<br /></a></li><li><a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-39092-Knoxville-Coffee-Examiner">Knoxville Coffee Examiner (x-39092)</a><br /></li></ol>Just follow those links to see a complete list of my articles under each title, which are handled and sorted separately. I'd love it if you check them out, especially if you subscribe, and if this article has made you interested in writing for Examiner, I'd appreciate an e-mail or a comment so I can refer you properly. If we communicate via e-mail, I'll be more than happy to share the upsides and downsides with you freely about writing for the site, so far as I see them now. For what it's worth, since I love writing and sharing what I know, writing for Examiner is fun, and it almost pays for my internet connection now (though not for my time), and the possibility for being "discovered" by someone that pays much more substantially is a nice bonus.<br /><br /><span>Click here to roll on through to</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2010/03/writing-about-food-for-examinercom-2.html">Writing about food and drink for Examiner.com Part 2: Does it Pay?</a></span>Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-78297256577372307772010-02-19T14:11:00.002-05:002010-02-19T14:14:31.320-05:00Surprise lunch with my wife at Hot Rod's 50's DinerI love when errands turn into me getting awesome lunch.<br /><br />I volunteered to ride around a little with my wife this afternoon while she ran some errands (actually, I ended up driving). We did that and then at the spur of the moment went to try to meet up with a new business contact of hers and found out that she was out to lunch at one of our favorite spots: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m1d1-Hot-Rods-50s-Diner--a-review-of-a-great-50s-style-restaurant-in-MaryvilleAlcoa">Hot Rod's 50's Diner (in Maryville, TN,</a> where we live). Since we like it, since we're hungry, and since her peeps are cool, we dropped by, did a little talking, and did a lot of eating.<br /><br />I tell you what: that place can make a burger and fries. If you're ever in the Maryville/Knoxville area, you should definitely try to make a trip by there. It's really good.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-20342604726594895192010-02-18T22:16:00.003-05:002010-02-18T22:33:31.711-05:00Working the social media thing and not getting itSo... I joined Twitter tonight, and as I'm sure about 80 million people have said before me,<br /><ol><li>I don't get Twitter;</li><li>I don't know how to work Twitter.</li></ol>I think I know my username (<a href="https://twitter.com/JLindsayCooks">@JLindsayCooks</a> - because "UntrainedGourmet" has one too many letters for precious character-counting Twitter and because I want to use it to promote my food blogging and writing for Examiner.com), but I'm not even sure of that. I have no followers and don't really have a clue of how to find people on there that I know. In fact, I don't know anyone that uses Twitter. If you use Twitter and want to keep up with what I'm doing or in any other way think I'm awesome enough to follow, come follow me. It will be fun. I'll be eternally grateful. You get bonus points if you tell me<br /><ol><li>What's the magic of Twitter;</li><li>How to work Twitter.</li></ol>I'm not a total moron (I've got a Ph.D. in something hard like math), so I know the <span style="font-style: italic;">basics</span> of how Twitter works, but what I can't figure out is how you get followers. I found some guides on the web that told me to give a book away or something. I don't have any books that I can e-mail you (unless you want a copy of my dissertation -- BORING!!!), so that's out. Luckily, I'm funny as hell, so following me will be totally worth it. As a bonus, I'll usually be talking about what I'm cooking or eating, which will be awesome.<br /><br />While I'm sitting here confused about the role of social internet media in the "promoting myself online" world, I'll point out that StumbleUpon, which you can clearly see I'm a part of, is one of the biggest mysteries on the internet. Seriously. I submit some good work to them; no one clicks. I click on some stuff; no one clicks. I submit something else; 70 people click (?). I submit something else that I think is better; 23 people click. I submit something else I don't think is quite as good; 800 people click (???). I submit other stuff; no one clicks. I'm totally mystified. I don't have time to go "Stumble around the internet" for hours a day clicking on bullshit that I don't care about or even that I think is neat, and I don't really get how it's any form of social outlet.<br /><br />The big confusing one is Digg. I tried to play their game. I don't get it either (less than I get Twitter). L.a.m.e. Social media confuses the hell out of me. Why can't internet marketing be a little less confusing?<br /><br />In other news, particularly the kind that pertains to food, I decided that my Southern-Chinese fusion recipes (bacon fried rice and peanut fried rice) are a little too hee-haw to publish on Examiner, so I wrote an<a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d18-Jamaican-Ugli-fruit-is-a-delicious-gourmet-tangelo--grapefruit-orange-and-tangerine-hybrid"> article about Ugli fruit</a> instead because it's like a super-weird, gourmet tangerine. I also told folks the secret to my <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d15-Rosemaryyogurt-flatbread-recipe-makes-an-easy-convenient-snack-or-accompaniment-to-many-meals">flatbreads</a>, which apparently everyone loves. Furthermore, I got hired on by the Examiner team to write articles under a second title: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-39092-Knoxville-Coffee-Examiner">Knoxville Coffee Examiner</a> (in addition to my regular gig as <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>), and I wrote my first article for them today, a long piece about <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-39092-Knoxville-Coffee-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d18-French-press-press-pot-coffee-press-coffee-plunger-?afetiere-a-piston-Many-names-great-coffee">the loveliness and use of a French press</a>, the rarity in use of which still surprises me.<br /><br />Ah well, at least I understand how blogging works. I get to come on here, say my piece, pretend people read it, and feel great about myself and all of the cool links I get to plant. If you're in the mood to humor me, check out the links, subscribe to my feeds on Examiner, follow me on Twitter, and Stumble everything I write, though I guess shameless paragraphs like this don't make that kind of thing happen.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-15164012968621108502010-02-15T15:48:00.003-05:002010-02-15T15:59:28.942-05:00Experiments with coconut and bacon, but not at the same timeWe've kind of run out of things here and really need a trip to the store. That's led to some rather creative dishes over the weekend that were really pretty good, to be honest.<br /><br />First, since the only meat we had left in the house was bacon, I decided to go for a Southern-Chinese fusion dish by making "bacon fried rice," which is every bit as uncomplicated as it sounds. Basically, I started several strips of bacon in the wok, fried them up nicely, and used the oil to make fried rice (with eggs, peas, and carrots, along with some onion, garlic, and ginger, of course) and then added the bacon, chopped up roughly, at the end, tossing it all through. It was surprisingly good... better, in fact than last night's similar dish (we have a lot of rice): fried peanuts in fried rice, which was also quite good. The essential idea there was to shallow-fry some raw peanuts until they were crunchy and then make them the primary protein component in the fried rice. I label it creative and good and am glad I made it.<br /><br />In other news, since I do a lot of working out and need the protein, these kinds of meals wouldn't cut it. I had to make some protein drinks. My usual recipe is just (whole) milk, whey protein concentrate, evaporated cane juice, and (Ghirardelli or better) cocoa powder with the occasional dash of cinnamon powder or vanilla extract. Feeling a bit creative and needing to use some leftover coconut milk from the curry of the day before, I added that in place of half the milk (about 6 oz. or so). Whoa. Seriously. Whoa. Seriously. Whoa. What a good idea!<br /><br />The weekend was rounded out with some of the best barbecue available in Maryville, the stuff over at <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d13-Great-barbecue-in-Maryville--Full-Service-BBQ-serves-great-meat-and-sides-from-a-former-gas-station">Full Service BBQ</a>, which is fantastic. The beef rocks, the pork rocks, the potato salad rocks. I had a good time with that stuff.<br /><br />I feel sad, however, that I'm a little too busy with life and doings to have time to post much on here... right after my reinvention of the blog! I'll get better at it hopefully before too long, so hang in there with me. As for now... I'm working on some whole wheat and flax <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d15-Rosemaryyogurt-flatbread-recipe-makes-an-easy-convenient-snack-or-accompaniment-to-many-meals">flatbread</a> that hopefully will get a little dose of pizza toppings put on it.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-91171120647981610372010-02-11T22:01:00.004-05:002010-02-11T22:17:26.976-05:00A new direction -- my relationship and experience of foodSo I'm still writing recipes and food whatnot for <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Examiner.com as the Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>, and that takes up enough of my writing-specifics-about-food time to where I have little left for blogging about it, particularly since the theme so far of this blog has been sharing the recipes I've tried and loved, which is exactly where I get most of my material for Examiner. Since I don't want to double-post, and I don't want to think up second-rate stuff for the blog, I've just kind of let it fall by the wayside. That changes again today, but with a different bent: I'm going to spend my time on here talking about my relationship with food and saying the things I can't say on Examiner (where I'm a "journalist" that has to follow the rules that only few others seem to follow: write in the third person and leave personal notes <span style="font-style: italic;">out</span>).<br /><br />SO! If you used to come here to find cool recipes to try, then you'll probably only find links to them as I put them on <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Examiner</a> (do feel free to click those links, go to those pages, check out the recipes, enjoy them, and become a subscriber of my Examiner feed, which delivers my posts to you for free in your e-mail). This blog is about to get a bunch more personal instead of being about showcasing the recipes so much: it will be about my <span style="font-style: italic;">experience</span> of recipes, foods, and other topics related to me the person... and a good deal about the food still. I think it's fair to say that I will continue to shamelessly promote myself and my Examiner articles, so expect a fair many links (which, like I suggested, you can or might should click on to visit them in their glory and then become a subscriber so you can enjoy them more regularly).<br /><br />Speaking of shameless plugs, the article I wrote for Examiner today is kind of strange. It was really good, really interesting, and something I ate yesterday: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d11-Baked-sweet-potato-French-fries-featuring-fun-purple-and-orange-sweet-potatoes">oven-baked sweet potato French fries in both purple and orange</a>. The strange bit, other than the vibrant purple of the purple sweet potatoes, is that it would be a perfect recipe for Halloween, and it's dead in the middle of February, which is pretty much the least Halloween-like month of the year. I'm betting I'll repost it. Here's what it looked like with both of them on the plate:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/S3TGmIKRBLI/AAAAAAAAASE/ajUpAgk1uH4/s1600-h/IMG_2198.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/S3TGmIKRBLI/AAAAAAAAASE/ajUpAgk1uH4/s320/IMG_2198.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437189008470901938" border="0" /></a>Neat, huh? They were good, too. The oven-baked quality of them seemed like it would leave me with soggy fries, but the reality is that with a quick par-boiling first, they come out almost every bit as crispy from the oven as they will from a deep fryer, though it takes considerably longer to get there.<br /><br />If you wonder, I'm now a purple sweet potato fan (I can't wait to try them mashed, if only for the novelty of the appearance of the outcome) -- they're a little denser and drier, it seems, than the orange kind, and a bit less sweet, so overall, particularly in a savory use like this, they are really, really good (particularly smothered in some spicy barbecue sauce: Joe's Mo-Hotter XX Hell Sauce, which has a name I wish I was making up and which ended up in my kitchen only because we got some of it as kids to laugh about the name and have been laughing about it ever since... over 15 years of humor from pepper sauce).<br /><br />Dinner tonight... well, it rocked. The recipe probably won't end up on Examiner due to their "local" initiative and the extreme difficulty of connecting "Chinese-style beef steak and mushrooms in coconut sauce over plain fried rice" with "Knoxville, TN." It's a shame, really, because it was really, really good. Maybe I'll change my mind and write about it, but I should have taken a picture because I don't have one to go with the article... unless the leftovers tomorrow come out nice looking.<br /><br />Anyway, I hope you enjoy the new format of the blog, even though the readership of this blog is so weak right now that I can probably expect that no one will see this post. If you do, welcome aboard... this should be kind of fun.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-81415530522554227682009-12-27T12:54:00.002-05:002009-12-27T13:07:39.626-05:00Perfect chocolate chip cookies, great recipes, and some restaurants... writing for Examiner stillGranted, I'm not doing such a great job of keeping up with writing on this blog like I used to. It's difficult to come up with great material on one topic in two places, and frankly, I get paid to write for Examiner. So, while it's perhaps less than any readers I have left might hope for, here's another link-dump to stuff I've been writing on there as the <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>.<br /><br />Since it's coming up so soon, in case you missed it or just ran into this blog, you should definitely check out my <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-New-Years-Resolutions-with-gourmet-food-and-drink">list of New Year's resolutions that involve food and drink</a>. I've already started doing some of them, and even if you're reading this in mid-April, it's never too late to start a new, healthy habit like trying out new foods or learning to cook.<br /><br />In as big a surprise to me as it will be to many of you, <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Maryvilles-local-coffee-roaster-Vienna-Coffee-Company">Vienna Coffee Company</a> (a popular topic here on The Untrained Gourmet because it's local to my Maryville/Knoxville area and because they do a great job) has thoroughly impressed me (and my wife and coffee-snob brother) with their <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d15-Colombian-coffee-can-be-great--Two-Great-local-coffees-from-Vienna-Coffee-Company">high-quality Colombian coffee </a>roasts that can't be missed.<br /><br />Some of you might remember <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d21-Chinese-beef-and-potato-stew-recipe-a-variation-on-a-comfortfood-classic">JB's beef and potato stew</a> from way back when. I liked it so much the last time I made it that I decided it needed more exposure in my quest to have it be shared with the world on Examiner, so do check it out (especially if you're new here and don't remember it!).<br /><br />I went to eat at <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d22-Metro-Pizza-incredibly-good-and-authentic-New-York-style-pizza-in-East-Tennessee">Metro Pizza</a> in Alcoa (between Maryville and Knoxville) recently and was quite pleasantly surprised. I'm glad to know there are still a few good non-chain pizza places around. I wrote a glowing review for Examiner that's worth looking at if you like Metro Pizza or are interested in checking it out. Metro Pizza serves authentic New York style pizzas that are hand-made by folks that know and love what they're doing. It's also a family-run operation, which is nice in the corporate-jungle world we live in today.<br /><br />Another classic from this blog, way back when, the <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d22-Akoho-sy-voanio--chicken-in-coconut-milk--a-recipe-for-a-staple-in-the-cuisine-of-Madagascar">Madagascan chicken in coconut milk, akoho sy voanio</a>, was also featured due to my belief that everyone should find (and love) this fantastic dish. Have a look!<br /><br />Who doesn't like <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d23-Fried-potato-soup--a-recipe-for-a-creamy-comfortfood-favorite">potato soup</a>? A great variation on the classic using fried potatoes for a different taste and texture can be found on Examiner now thanks to my recent article on the matter. Oh, and if you don't like it, you probably just need more bacon in yours. That's a tip to take home with you.<br /><br />My mom makes the best chocolate chips in the universe (probably). In fact, they're so good that I violate my long-standing, otherwise-firm rule about vegetable shortening to enjoy them (the rule is: don't eat anything containing vegetable shortening). I put her secret <a href="http://wwww.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d27-Perfect-chocolate-chip-cookies-recipe--minor-variations-on-the-Nestle-Tollhouse-recipe">best chocolate chips in the world recipe</a> up on Examiner for the world to find and profit from (with her permission). Thanks, Mom!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-67551094499401605062009-12-11T22:14:00.002-05:002009-12-11T22:29:55.995-05:00More great stuff on Examiner.com from the Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner (ME!)So there's a project going on over at Examiner.com where we're supposed to try to write articles about New Year's Resolutions. At first I thought: "damn, I too bad I'm not in fitness/health/exercise; I'd be all over that!" Then I realized how many <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-New-Years-Resolutions-with-gourmet-food-and-drink">cool ideas there are for (gourmet) food and drink related New Year's resolutions</a> (just in time for me to make some for myself, even). The link in the previous sentence takes you to a central article I wrote connected to all of the others. Take a look if you want cooking and food to be on your New Year's resolution list (resolutions that are <span style="font-style: italic;">easy</span> to stick with!).<br /><br />Here are the individual articles, to tell you more clearly what's there:<br /><ul><li><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-A-New-Years-Resolution-for-better-cooking--wine-of-the-week">New Year's Food and Drink Resolution #1: Wine of the week</a>. This is a project my brother and I did for months after I bought <span style="font-style: italic;">The Wine Bible</span> by Karen MacNeil (a must have for wine enthusiasts or anyone that wants to know more about wine). It was one of the best ideas I've ever had. For a while, it was even more social when we had "Wino Wednesday," in which we got together on Wednesday nights, shared wines (with a purpose of learning about them) and food, and discussed philosophical ideas until late, late, late. Way fun, way cool. I might have to look into doing this again, actually.</li><li><a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-A-New-Years-Resolution-for-better-cooking--cheese-of-the-week-and-cheese-parties"><span style="font-weight: bold;">New Year's Food and Drink Resolution #2: Cheese of the week</span></a>. Given Resolution #1, this doesn't sound too creative until you visit a major cheese display and realize how little you know about cheese (or go read about cheeses of the world on Wikipedia!). It also pairs perfectly with Resolution #1 since cheese and wine go famously great together. Cheese was very, very frequently another central feature of "Wino Wednesday." If you want a list of great cheeses to consider getting started with, check out this article on <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-6-excellent-gourmet-cheeses-to-try-with-serving-and-drink-pairing-suggestions">6 excellent gourmet cheeses to try (with food pairing and drink suggestions)</a>.<br /></li><li><a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-A-New-Years-Resolution-for-better-cooking--cooking-parties-with-a-friend-or-friends"><span style="font-weight: bold;">New Year's Food and Drink Resolution #3: Food with friends</span></a>. This also isn't a copycat, particularly when you take my idea of "using" one of your gourmet-skilled friends as a teacher (paid in the food and drinks, of course) and you use it as an excuse to learn and practice your own cooking, which is kind of the goal: let learning to cook be your resolution.</li><li><a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-A-New-Years-Resolution-for-better-cooking--learn-to-cook-or-improve-your-skills"><span style="font-weight: bold;">New Year's Food and Drink Resolution #4: Learn to cook</span></a>. This here is what the real resolution for next year should be -- upping your skills. Everyone knows that chicks only want boyfriends (husbands) will skills. From personal experience, I can tell you that "cooking skills" win a <span style="font-style: italic;">lot</span> of points with the lovely wife. Resolution #3 is a system of accountability and camaraderie to facilitate this resolution.</li><li><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d11-A-New-Years-Resolution-for-better-cooking-and-eating--trying-new-things-regularly-on-purpose">New Year's Food and Drink Resolution #5: Get out and try new things</a>. This resolution really serves Resolution #4 by keeping you inspired, and it provides lots of great meal opportunities, vacation ideas, and potential dates to go on, not to mention all of the increased knowledge you'll have to impress said date with if you do #5 solo first for a while.</li></ul>So, get a fitness-based New Year's resolution like everyone else... you'll need it once you start up some or all of these interrelated food-and-drinks-centered ones (all of which could very possibly improve your life immeasurably if you stick with them).Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-56248843989724690142009-12-10T20:46:00.002-05:002009-12-10T21:18:56.221-05:00Gourmet food articles I've written for Examiner.comAs you know, I've taken up the gauntlet as the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>, writing for Examiner.com. Since I'm trying to put nearly all original content on there, check out what I've had to say. There are a lot of great recipes and ideas there that you shouldn't miss.<br /><ul><li>My most recent article is time-sensitive, so see it first! <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d10-Panama-Esmeralda-special-by-Dancing-Goats-Coffee-final-roast-of-a-premium-coffee">Dancing Goats Coffee is doing their final roast in 2009 of the Panama Esmeralda Special (100% Geisha coffee)</a>. This stuff is seriously top-quality and makes a great Christmas gift for a foodie or coffee-lover.</li><li>If you're going to cook well, you need seasonings. Here are <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d10-12-dry-musthave-dry-seasonings-for-every-serious-cook-to-have-in-their-kitchen">12 must-have dry seasonings for any great cook</a>.</li><li>Here's a three-part, very informative article about tea. <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d9-Premium-tea--higher-quality-and-more-diverse-than-what-comes-in-a-bag">Part 1 is about premium teas</a>; <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d9-Premium-tea-part-two-infusions-other-than-tea-and-tea-drinks">Part 2 is about other infusions and tea drinks</a>; and <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d9-Premium-tea-part-three--a-recipe-for-masala-chai-tea">Part 3 is a recipe for homemade masala chai tea</a>. You can also find some great <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d9-Premium-tea--higher-quality-and-more-diverse-than-what-comes-in-a-bag">links to online premium tea retailers</a>.</li><li>Every foodie, college student, and almost everyone else loves to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d8-Grocery-store-gift-cards-the-perfect-holiday-gift-for-foodies-and-college-students">get a Christmas gift card to a (upscale) grocery store</a> as a gift!</li><li>If you've read this blog at all, then you know I love my Aeropress coffee maker. Here are two articles on Examiner extolling it as well: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d8-The-Aeropress-an-unlikely-coffeemaking-gift-for-someone-who-has-everything">a review of the Aeropress</a> and <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d8-A-great-latte-recipe-and-how-to-do-it-without-needing-any-espensive-tools-no-espresso-machine">how to make a great latte with the Aeropress and a blender</a>.</li><li>Speaking of coffee, you should <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d8-Thunderhead-Perk-worldclass-coffee-and-treats-just-outside-the-Great-Smoky-Mountains">visit Thunderhead perk in Townsend, TN, and read this review</a> for extra incentive. Don't miss the scones!</li><li>While you're up and around the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d7-Two-great-traditional-holiday-recipes-from-The-Great-Smoky-Mountains-National-Park-Association">Great Smoky Mountains National Park, pick up a cookbook after you read this article about some of the great traditional holiday recipes from the Great Smoky Mountains</a>.</li><li>Planning to cook a bird this year? See <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Two-tips-for-deliciously-tender-and-flavorful-roasted-birds--and-one-applies-to-all-roasts">this article about brining and butterflying your holiday turkey, chicken, goose, or duck</a>, and read <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-A-great-brine-for-roasted-turkey-and-other-roasts--make-meat-juicy-and-flavorful">its follow-up article on how to make a great brine for your bird or other roasts</a>.</li><li>Quite possibly, everyone in the universe loves hot chocolate. The Aztec king used to drink it heavily daily (50 or more cups a day!) to preserve his strength and potency. In this article, you can <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Homemade-hot-chocolate-or-cocoa-from-scratch--save-money-and-do-better--with-this-winter-treat">learn how to make your own homemade hot cocoa (hot chocolate)</a>. In this follow-up article, you can <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Homemade-hot-chocolate-hot-cocoa-made-even-better--delicious-variations">learn some great variations on hot cocoa (hot chocolate)</a>.</li><li>Lentils are underrated. Read about how to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Perfect-lentil-soups--vegetarian-soup-with-options-for-meat-lovers">make great lentil soups here</a>.</li><li>Ginger can be an intimidating ingredient. Learn how to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Christmas-holidays-uses-and-other-uses-for-ginger-root">love and use ginger here</a>.</li><li>Great soups almost always include a great stock. Learn to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Rich-chicken-stock-from-scratch-a-great-base-for-soups-and-gravies">make your own rich chicken stock from scratch here</a>. Use it to make <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Homemade-chicken-noodle-soup-completely-from-scratch">healthy chicken noodle soup completely from scratch</a>!<br /></li><li>Make some <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Sweet-yeast-rolls-perfect-on-any-Thanksgiving-or-Christmas-holiday-table">sweet yeast rolls with this recipe</a>. Use the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Pepperoni-rolls-a-Christmastime-family-tradition">dough to make a West Virginia favorite: pepperoni rolls</a>.</li><li>I've praised paprika before. <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Paprika-a-few-great-uses">Click here to see my Examiner.com article about (smoked) paprika and its uses</a>.</li><li>Need some snack ideas for the holidays? <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d2-Five-great-snacks-for-the-Christmas-holiday-season-and-what-to-drink-with-them">Here's a list of five of my favorite holiday-season snacks</a>.</li><li>Speaking of snacks, I <span style="font-style: italic;">love</span> citrus and citrus juices. Here are three related articles talking about (1) <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d3-Tips-for-tangerines-and-other-Christmasseason-citrus-gifts">holiday-season citruses, particularly tangerines and grapefruits</a>, (2) <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Fresh-squeezed-orange-tangerine-and-grapefruit-juices-at-The-Fresh-Market">freshly squeezed orange, grapefruit, and tangerine juice at The Fresh Market</a>, and (3) an update when I recently discovered that they also produce their <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d7-Fresh-squeezed-organic-orange-juice-now-available-at-The-Fresh-Market">freshly squeezed orange juice from certified organic oranges</a>.</li><li>I tested out <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d2-Product-review-Annie-Chuns-noodle-bowls">Annie Chun's Noodle Bowls here and wrote a review</a>.</li><li>Since learning how to make it in June, I think <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Homemade-pasta-recipe">homemade pasta has become my favorite food, particularly when I make shaved pasta</a> for Asian and other cuisine. I had to share it with my Examiner.com readers (you could be one too!)<br /></li><li>Followers of this blog also know that I like to test out and review many local coffees. I wrote <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Maryvilles-local-coffee-roaster-Vienna-Coffee-Company">an overall review of the local to Knoxville and Maryville, TN, coffee roaster, Vienna</a> Coffee Company.</li><li>I can't get enough of this stuff or tell enough people about it: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Food-product-reivew-double-cream-white-chocolate-milk-from-The-Fresh-Market">The Fresh Market's double-cream white chocolate milk</a>. <span style="font-style: italic;">Naughty good!!!</span></li><li><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>T<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></span></span>he post that started it all for me there, which I featured on here as well: <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m11d30-Sweet-potato-and-apple-cream-soup-a-Thanksgiving-side-dish">my favorite dish this year at Thanksgiving was my sweet potato and apple cream soup</a>. Beautiful!</li><li>Last, but certainly not least, I started providing a hub-page of links to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Examined-Other-great-food-and-recipe-articles-on-Examinercom-this-week-Nov-29--Dec-5">some of the best of what other Food Examiners on Examiner.com are writing about</a> each week. Take a look and subscribe to some of their pages, if you like. Some of their stuff is really good!</li></ul>So... if you're not visiting my <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a> page and keeping up with it (why not subscribe and make it easy on yourself), then you're missing the best of what I have to say about food lately! Check it out!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-27903917534711854032009-12-08T13:43:00.003-05:002009-12-10T21:20:38.257-05:00Thunderhead Perk in Townsend, TN"Far away from the daily grind," they say. Indeed. This place is magnificent. A tiny treasure that's all too easy to overlook just outside the lovely Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Townsend, TN.<br /><br />To save you from seeing them twice, see my recent <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d8-Thunderhead-Perk-worldclass-coffee-and-treats-just-outside-the-Great-Smoky-Mountains">review of Thunderhead Perk</a> as the Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner. My wife and I had a great early-morning coffee date there today, and I can say with certainty that as coffee shops go, this one is a must-visit.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-43441793627119945412009-12-06T13:55:00.005-05:002009-12-10T21:21:02.863-05:00Ginger root! Uses and ideas<p>I love ginger root (it's actually a rhizome, not a root, but this isn't that kind of blog). It's got to be one of my very favorite spices. I use it almost indiscriminately... well, okay, that's not true. It goes in an awful lot of my soups, stews, teas, and desserts, though. Why? Because it makes them all better!</p><p>I get the impression from folks that a lot of people don't know what to do with ginger root, but it doesn't have to be a mysterious ingredient. It's basic character is that it's spicy with a distinctive flavor that might be described by some as being a bit soapy. I don't think soapy is quite right, but spicy is. It's <span style="font-style: italic;">hot</span> but not like peppers.<br /></p><p>Actually, ginger is splendidly spicy, and its characteristic flavor can be great in teas, desserts, and many dishes. Plus, it is quite good for you. As an added benefit, Chinese medicine says that ginger root is warming (good for winter) and excellent for digestion. In fact, it is also an effective aid in reducing motion sickness, it's stomach-calming effects are so potent!<br /></p><p>Although the rhizome looks a little alien, don't be afraid of ginger! Here are some ideas on how to use this wonderful spice, fresh or dried:</p><ul><li>Gingerbread is a holiday favorite. If you don't just buy some ready-made and want to make your own, check out <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tanya-holland/gingerbread-recipe/index.html" _cke_saved_href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tanya-holland/gingerbread-recipe/index.html" target="_blank">this popular recipe from The Food Network</a>. Making gingerbread and designing gingerbread houses is a wonderfully fun thing to do with the kids around the holidays.</li><li>Ginger can go a long way to making tea a more warming and satisfying drink, particularly when it's cold outside. Slice fresh ginger root thinly into "coins" and drop one to three of them, according to your tastes, into the bottom of your teacup or teapot before adding the water to infuse your tea. If you use tea bags, that's fine too. You can eat the ginger if you want, but it's quite spicy!</li><li>Adding ginger to teas isn't just tasty, it's healthful too. Ginger is very warming, and adding some to tea, particularly black tea, in the fall and winter, it can help keep you warmer and healthier. I have it on good authority that a cup of black tea a day during the fall and winter is a very good idea to "keep out the cold." Adding ginger can help even more. Also, even though Chinese medicine labels green tea as "cooling," a few coins of ginger can really counteract that. It also is a great aid to digestion during this season of overindulging at the table.</li><li>Add fresh ginger, either in thinly sliced coins, matchsticks, or by mincing it to your <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/07/jbs-beef-and-potato-stew.html">beef stews</a>. It's surprisingly good. Usually about "an inch" of the root for a large stew is appropriate, but use this seasoning to your tastes.</li><li>Any <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/search/label/Asian" _cke_saved_href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/search/label/Asian" target="_blank">Asian fried dishes</a> or soups will call for ginger. These are great with your <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Homemade-pasta-recipe" _cke_saved_href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner~y2009m12d1-Homemade-pasta-recipe">homemade pasta</a>, particularly the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d1-Homemade-pasta-recipe" _cke_saved_href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner~y2009m12d1-Homemade-pasta-recipe">shaved pasta</a>, which is very common in <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/search/label/Asian" _cke_saved_href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/search/label/Asian" target="_blank">Chinese home cooking</a>.</li><li>Add a little dried ginger to the filling mixture for cinnamon rolls, which are absolutely delightful this time of year. You can find a <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/cinnamon-rolls-recipe/index.html" _cke_saved_href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/cinnamon-rolls-recipe/index.html" target="_blank">popular recipe for cinnamon rolls here, from The Food Network</a>.</li><li>A small amount of finely minced fresh ginger is absolutely delicious in peach or berry pies and cobblers. Shh... that's a major secret of mine. Actually, in July when it's the right time, make your blueberry pies but add one peach, sliced very thinly and a half an inch of finely minced or grated fresh ginger. It will blow your mind!<br /></li><li>Add several coins of fresh ginger to <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Rich-chicken-stock-from-scratch-a-great-base-for-soups-and-gravies" _cke_saved_href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner~y2009m12d5-Rich-chicken-stock-from-scratch-a-great-base-for-soups-and-gravies">your stocks</a> or some matchsticks, grated, or minced fresh ginger to your soups (like <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Homemade-chicken-noodle-soup-completely-from-scratch" _cke_saved_href="http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner~y2009m12d4-Homemade-chicken-noodle-soup-completely-from-scratch">this one</a> and <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d6-Perfect-lentil-soups--vegetarian-soup-with-options-for-meat-lovers" _cke_saved_href="http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner~y2009m12d6-Perfect-lentil-soups--vegetarian-soup-with-options-for-meat-lovers">this one</a>) for a nice depth of flavor and a bit of indistinct, pleasant spiciness.</li><li>For the bold, flavor-loving, experience-seeking types, slice fresh ginger into very thin coins and enjoy them raw. It's quite spicy with a distinctive, interesting flavor.</li><li>Make very small matchsticks with fresh ginger and add them to salads. This is particularly good if a very light touch of sesame oil is added to the dressing.</li><li>Add half an inch or an inch of ginger to your fresh juice recipes if you are a fresh juicer. In fact, this much ginger with several apples and half a lemon, mixed evenly with club soda, makes a quick and easy drink similar to ginger ale. Several apples and a whole lemon (peel and all) with this much ginger makes a wonderful ginger-lemonade that can't be beat!<br /></li></ul><p>To make ginger "coins," slice the ginger in thin cross-sections to obtain a nearly round coin shape. To make matchsticks, stack up several coins and cut them into thin strips, all in one direction. To obtain a fine dice or mince on your ginger, take the matchsticks, and cut them into tiny pieces cross-sectionally.</p><p>Thanks go to the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a> (that's me, haha!) for this article, which can be found on Examiner.com in a slightly different version.</p><p>Oh, and if you've missed it, <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d5-Examined-Other-great-food-and-recipe-articles-on-Examinercom-this-week-Nov-29--Dec-5">here's another article I wrote on Examiner.com</a> highlighting some of what was best in food last week from other food Examiners around the region and country. Check it out for some great ideas, particularly for holiday recipes!<br /></p>Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-41513759884300588892009-12-04T12:42:00.005-05:002009-12-04T12:54:02.408-05:00Fresh squeezed juices from the Fresh Market, a product review<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxlKyhyFCTI/AAAAAAAAAR4/H4tqeK76QWQ/s1600-h/IMG_1882.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 204px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxlKyhyFCTI/AAAAAAAAAR4/H4tqeK76QWQ/s320/IMG_1882.JPG" alt="Fresh squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice from the Fresh Market" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411438659184691506" border="0" /></a>I love beverages. I particularly love them when they're sweet, and especially even more so when they're good for me too. Hence, I go to The Fresh Market way too often to buy their freshly squeezed juices (and usually who knows how much<a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/product-review-fresh-markets-double.html"> other stuff</a> as well!). In fact, because there is now an Earth Fare almost as conveniently located to where I work as there is a Fresh Market store, these juices are the primary item that keeps my patronage at TFM. This one, obviously, is the grapefruit juice, and as you can see, I've already dipped into it a little. That's because it's crazy good and impossible to resist... plus it's sort of the inspiration for this post, and I needed some direct inspiring.<br /><br />For more about these juices, you can check out <a href="http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d4-Fresh-squeezed-orange-tangerine-and-grapefruit-juices-at-The-Fresh-Market">the article I wrote about them</a> on <a href="http://www.examiner.com/Knoxville?cid=citypicker_list">Examiner.com</a> as the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>. If you do, also check out <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner%7Ey2009m12d3-Tips-for-tangerines-and-other-Christmasseason-citrus-gifts">the related post on tangerines and other citruses</a>, perfect for the season since this <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> their season, including several awesome uses for the juices.<br /><br />I'd call these juices one of the secrets to my success, if success can be measured in terms of how much happiness I think they bring to my life (plus some nice nutrition and vitamin-C!). Definitely check them out!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-33985097879200336632009-12-01T17:21:00.002-05:002009-12-10T21:22:01.931-05:00Knoxville Gourmet Food ExaminerI've recently been named the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-31650-Knoxville-Gourmet-Food-Examiner">Knoxville Gourmet Food Examiner</a>, writing for <a href="http://www.examiner.com/Knoxville">Examiner.com</a>. Click on the link on my title to check out my profile, which contains links to all of my articles, to see what I've got to say for them!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-84589701988813837232009-11-30T22:26:00.003-05:002009-11-30T22:49:35.174-05:00Homemade noodles featuring fresh squash juiceHomemade noodles featuring fresh squash juice? Squash juice? What is this, Harry Potter all of a sudden? Do I have house elves working in my kitchen? Seriously? Squash juice? And isn't it pumpkin juice? But isn't pumpkin a squash? Wait, wait, wait... <span style="font-style: italic;">squash juice noodles</span>... you <span style="font-style: italic;">can't</span> be serious.<br /><br />Wrong. I'm serious. Look!<br />Here's (some of) the squash juice, specifically butternut and golden acorn squash... looks like pumpkin juice:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN89ihHEI/AAAAAAAAARg/6GqvS1WxNYY/s1600/IMG_1635.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN89ihHEI/AAAAAAAAARg/6GqvS1WxNYY/s320/IMG_1635.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410105130829814850" border="0" /></a>Here's the resulting lump of pasta dough:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN9BTnNXI/AAAAAAAAARo/B18c0xUAAak/s1600/IMG_1637.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN9BTnNXI/AAAAAAAAARo/B18c0xUAAak/s320/IMG_1637.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410105131841041778" border="0" /></a>"<span style="font-style: italic;">Double-double toil and trouble/Fire burn and cauldron bubble!</span>" Here's the finished shaved noodles!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN9T2FkPI/AAAAAAAAARw/BULIegyb8y8/s1600/IMG_1638.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxSN9T2FkPI/AAAAAAAAARw/BULIegyb8y8/s320/IMG_1638.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410105136817475826" border="0" /></a>Nice and orangish, huh? Believe me... they were surprisingly good too. The squash flavors came through, sweet and a bit nutty with that nice, obvious taste that is only <span style="font-style: italic;">squash</span>, but they weren't overpowering. They made a lovely accent to the chewy, doughy noodles.<br /><br />Surprisingly enough, the "pumpkin juice" was stunningly good as well. It was a test of will to keep myself from drinking a glass of it, but that's probably because I used small, vibrant squash from my garden this summer that were amazingly sweet. Specifically, I got about two cups of juice from one small butternut squash and one full-sized golden acorn squash (interestingly enough, neither of which were planted intentionally -- they grew out of an old compost pile!).<br /><br />To make this, you need some special equipment: a juicer (like the <a href="http://www.powerjuicer.com/power-juicer-pro.html">Jack Lalanne Power Juicer</a>, e.g.). These are well worth the investment, <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/09/healthy-juicing.html">considering</a> <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/08/juicing-for-health.html">the potential</a>! Once obtained, it couldn't be easier... and if you get some small, sweet pumpkins, then you can entertain your Harry-Potter-crazy kids (or yourself...) by making yourself some authentic, super-healthy, fresh pumpkin juice sometimes (sweetened with some apples if needed with little extra effort or expense). You don't even have to peel the squash as long as you wash it really well first, though you certainly could. You probably do want to seed and gut it, though.<br /><br />The rest of the recipe, which could use juices from essentially any veggies you wanted (carrots, beets, spinach, or parsley seem like other interesting pasta choices, as is potato and sweet potato, which I've tested), is simply to replace some, most, or all of the water in a recipe of homemade pasta with the juice you make. In this case, I replaced the entire cup of water for a three-cup pasta with the squash juice. In case you don't know how to make these noodles, see <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/11/pork-cubes-with-garlic-mushrooms-and.html">here for a recipe</a> or read the summary of this recipe below! The noodles, incidentally, can be used as I typically use them, in Asian fare since that's how I learned about them, or in place of whatever usual noodles you put into a pasta dish. Click on the labels (to your right): noodles, pasta, and Asian for lots of ideas on how to use these noodles. I've read good things about doing lasagne this way and look forward to testing it out, probably with veggie noodles.<br /><br />In case you want things to be specific, here's the actual recipe I used for these noodles:<br /><ul><li>3 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour, sifted;</li><li>1 cup of freshly made acorn and butternut squash juice;</li><li>A pinch of salt;</li><li>Elbow grease.</li></ul>Add all of the ingredients except the grease in a bowl and combine until mixed. Once the mixture starts to become a dough, add elbow grease by kneading the dough until it is smooth and has a nice texture. Carefully with a very sharp knife shave the noodles from the ball of dough directly into boiling water, pulling and pinching the last few (or all of them if you get frustrated enough). Boil for about 3-5 minutes after the end of the shaving until the noodles are all done. Drain and use like pasta.<br /><br />Oh... since I mentioned it above... if you get a juicer and get all excited and juice potatoes or sweet potatoes, for whatever purpose, don't drink it. It tastes pretty bad and seems to make me feel quite ill every time I try it. I don't think it's a good thing to do.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-46837436461795615442009-11-27T19:24:00.002-05:002009-11-27T19:53:45.343-05:00Pork Cubes with Garlic, Mushrooms, and Carrots over Shaved NoodlesThis was another dish that my wife thought was just about perfect. My opinion is that the reason is centered in that I'm getting better at making the noodles.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxBulEHAc7I/AAAAAAAAARY/DdqHBb8lLZ8/s1600/IMG_1714.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SxBulEHAc7I/AAAAAAAAARY/DdqHBb8lLZ8/s320/IMG_1714.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408944735509312434" border="0" /></a>The trick, really, is not overdoing the pork. Pork gets very dry very quickly when it's overcooked. Of course, it has to be cooked through, so don't underdo it either!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ingredients</span>:<br /><ul><li>One 3-cup recipe of shaved noodles (see below);</li><li>About a pound of pork chops, cut into half-inch cubes;</li><li>1/2 medium sweet onion, halved and sliced into quarter inch strips;<br /></li><li>Two full-sized carrots, cut into two-inch boards and then halved;</li><li>About ten white mushrooms, cleaned and quartered;</li><li>Four or five cloves of garlic, crushed (first) and minced;</li><li>Approximately 1 inch of fresh ginger, minced;</li><li>1-3 tsp (to taste) hot sauce;</li><li>1-2 tbsp (to taste) soy sauce;</li><li>1-2 tbsp canola oil;</li><li>Salt and black pepper to taste.<br /></li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;">Directions Summary</span>:<br />Start by putting a pan of salted water on to boil (for the noodles). Then prepare all of the vegetables and the meat. Set ingredients aside while preparing the noodle dough. When the dough is ready and the water is boiling (or very close to it!), heat the oil in the wok over high heat. Add all of the vegetables except the ginger and garlic and salt them. Then stir fry them momentarily. Shave the noodles into the boiling water, pausing occasionally to flip and stir the veggies, removing them from the pan when the onions start to caramelize. Set the vegetable mixture aside and add the pork to the hot wok. Season it with salt and pepper, and once it sears on one side, begin to stir fry it. Drain the noodles when they begin to float, after approximately five or six minutes in the boiling water. When the pork is nearly cooked through, add the hot sauce, toss the meat, and then add the vegetables back in. Add the soy sauce and mix thoroughly. Finally, either serve (traditional style, see below) or add the noodles to the pan and mix well.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shaved Noodles</span>:<br />To make shaved noodles, use a firm dough, approximately 3 to 1 (by volume) of flour to water, depending on the thirstiness of the flour. I add a pinch of salt and, in particular, <a href="http://www.kingarthurflour.com/">King Arthur brand</a> <a href="http://www.kingarthurflour.com/flours/all-purpose-flour.html">all-purpose unbleached flour</a>. Combine the ingredients, mix until it starts to form a dough, and then knead well for 10-15 minutes (longer for chewier noodles, shorter for less-chewy noodles). Then, after the dough rests for a moment, use a very sharp knife to shave slices off the ball of dough directly into the boiling water (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZghNDNNTSM">like this</a>, only mine are shorter, probably thicker, and not nearly as professionally done... also, my pot is a lot smaller as is my ball of dough). When the dough ball gets too small to continue this safely, pinch it thin and pull/tear the noodles off by hand. Cook them until they float (usually 4-6 minutes after the shaving ends).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Traditional Style Serving</span>:<br />Put some noodles in each of several bowls (one per person). Then, place a serving dish or the wok (with heat protection) full of the fried dish in the middle of the table. Condiments can be set nearby, if they're desired. Each person can spoon some of the fried dish into their bowl as they want and eat it directly that way, the whole family sharing in the meal process in an interesting, different, and somewhat more intimate way than we're used to in the West. Chopsticks, of course, enhance the experience!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-44261473840015472902009-11-26T21:04:00.004-05:002009-11-26T21:27:07.931-05:00Sweet Potato and Apple Cream Soup: An Unlikely Thanksgiving PostOf all of the things that I could talk about on Thanksgiving, like poultry of some kind (turkey, goose -- I really wanted to make goose -- chicken (capon, anyone?), or duck -- I really, really wanted to make a roasted duck), I choose to talk about sweet potato cream soup? Am I serious? Yes. Because it was crazy good and something <span style="font-style: italic;">different</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">interesting</span>. Plus, my mom beat me to the punch and cooked pretty much everything else last night, leaving me with a few sweet potatoes and a "do something with these... if you can!!!" challenge. Thanks, Mom.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Sw81IYHBeJI/AAAAAAAAARQ/Zv4wW3m0GwQ/s1600/IMG_1822.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Sw81IYHBeJI/AAAAAAAAARQ/Zv4wW3m0GwQ/s320/IMG_1822.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408600095522388114" border="0" /></a>"Wow, Jim, that's really, really, really, really good soup, and that's coming from someone who doesn't like sweet potatoes at all!" That was my mom's reaction to this stuff. Like I said, it was crazy good. So how did I do it?<br /><br />It started with my small pile of sweet potatoes: five small ones, as I would reckon them, all of the orange variety. I peeled them and chopped them into roughly three-quarters-inch cubes and dropped them into some cold water. On a whim, I added a red delicious apple (the only kind I saw at Mom's house, though I would have preferred Granny Smith for this), peeled, cored, and cut up similarly. That water got boiled until the sweet potatoes were nice and soft.<br /><br />Once it was done, I drained the pot and put all the solids back into the pan with about half a stick (2 tbsp.) of butter, probably 12 oz. of whole milk, a pinch of salt, a half teaspoon of good cinnamon powder, and a quarter of a cup of brown sugar. I also added a tablespoon of whiskey (by which I mean "bourbon" since I'm from the Southeast) because it's the holidays. After a few minutes of cooking on medium, I whipped out the immersion blender and blended it until it was quite smooth (this could be accomplished in a regular blender as well). Then I ran it through a relatively fine chinois to make it nice and smooth, putting it into a clean pan over medium-low heat.<br /><br />To finish it, start off by adding 2 more tbsp. of butter and stirring it through as it melts. Then <span style="font-style: italic;">taste</span> it. It should not taste flat. If it does, you probably need another pinch of salt to wake up the flavors and a little more cinnamon, sugar, and/or butter (or why not a little of all of them?). Use sugar to <span style="font-style: italic;">your</span> desired level of sweetness. For what it's worth, I would have garnished this with a small dollop of marshmallow fluff right in the middle of the bowl, and, of course, it is served hot as a wonderful starter for a good fall (or any time!) meal. Oh.. and as much of the sweet potato could be substituted out for squash as you'd like. It would still work wonderfully!<br /><br />Summary of the recipe:<br /><ul><li>Five small sweet potatoes or the equivalent, peeled and cut into cubes;</li><li>One apple, peeled, cored, and cut into cubes;</li><li>4 tbsp. (half a stick) of butter;</li><li>12-16 oz. whole milk, depending on desired consistency;</li><li>A pinch of salt;</li><li>1/2 tsp. cinnamon powder;</li><li>1/4 c. brown sugar</li><li>1 tbsp. whiskey or bourbon.<br /></li></ul>Summary of directions:<br />Boil sweet potatoes and apple until sweet potatoes are quite tender. Drain. Lower the heat to medium and add the sweet potato mixture, half of the butter, and the rest of the ingredients back into the pan. Let cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring, and then blend until smooth with an (immersion) blender. Strain (and press) the result through a chinois or fine mesh strainer into either a clean pan or back into the original. Discard the pulp (or use it somehow else?). Add the remaining butter, adjust the flavors, and serve hot with an optional garnish of marshmallow fluff or fresh crema.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-25932819866780349402009-11-12T22:12:00.003-05:002009-11-12T22:31:58.821-05:00Cafe du Monde French Roast With Chicory LatteI've been gone, working like crazy, for a couple of weeks, left off with a <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/black-tea-with-caramel-syrup.html">bunch of</a> <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/product-review-fresh-markets-double.html">articles about</a> <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/coffee-review-vienna-coffee-companys.html">beverages</a>, and I come back with another article about something good to drink? Yes. That's me. Ask my wife: I love beverages (and often am carrying two or three or four around with me) -- only sometimes alcoholic ones. There's been a <span style="font-style: italic;">bunch</span> of surpassingly good food, but unfortunately I've been too busy to jot down how I did what I did with it. No worries, though... there will be more!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SvzP0BCoHPI/AAAAAAAAARA/53EquZM_6cI/s1600-h/IMG_1570.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SvzP0BCoHPI/AAAAAAAAARA/53EquZM_6cI/s320/IMG_1570.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403422145477352690" border="0" /></a>So, this is really a post about a few beverages, though not the ones in the picture. Those are both the same and only one of the the things I'm about to talk about. As you can see, I used the Cafe du Monde French roast coffee and chicory, and I followed my normal plan to use my Aeropress to make a latte (which I've been referring to as a fake "cappuccino" but realize now that I use too much milk to justify that term).<br />That basic recipe again? Sure:<br /><ul><li>Four scoops (? tablespoons, I think) coffee, usually fresh and whole-bean as opposed to this pre-ground kind of stuff;</li><li>12 oz. freshly boiled water (for the Aeropress, only about 10 oz gets used and it should be cooled to around 180-190F before using) or approximately four largish shots of espresso (or equivalent);</li><li>8 oz. whole milk with 2 oz half and half, heated to just below scalding and then put in a blender on high for about twenty or thirty seconds;<br /></li><li>One tablespoon turbinado sugar, divided into two equal amounts, one in the coffee and the other in the milk;</li><li>A dash of premium vanilla extract in the milk.<br /></li></ul>How does it come out? Well, alright. I think if you're a die-hard Cafe du Monde coffee with chicory lover, it's probably quite good. I'm not. I like the little bit of variety of the chicory, but personally, I don't like <span style="font-style: italic;">that much</span> of it at once. So... how can I "fix" this?<br /><br />Two options:<br /><ol><li>Only use 1 scoop of the Cafe du Monde stuff and 3 scoops of my favorite freshly ground whole-bean stuff: quite good... surprisingly good... almost better than usual with just that little bit of chicory flirting in the background;</li><li>Add caramel and cocoa to make it a turtle mocha-latte... superb! I used just a dash (half teaspoon or so) of the Rieme caramel syrup (also mentioned <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/black-tea-with-caramel-syrup.html">here</a>) into the coffee and a heaping tablespoon of Ghiridelli unsweetened cocoa powder into the milk while it heated up, almost like making really weak hot cocoa.</li></ol>If you are into experiments, give it a try. It's a bit of a shame that I can't get the Cafe du Monde stuff in a whole-bean and roasted chicory-chunk variety, but I'm sure the freshness wouldn't be terribly awesome (or could that also be possible in this advanced day and age of essentially instant shipping abilities??).Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-16168484025250907862009-10-26T12:11:00.005-04:002009-10-26T12:23:18.554-04:00Black Tea with Caramel SyrupI'm still busy, so I still have to make short posts. I've made some wonderfully good stuff, but I have pretty much no time to talk about it. Let me talk about something I've been making a lot of that's quick and easy, though... something to get you through hard-workin' times when you've just had enough coffee: tea. According to my friend JB, who is Chinese and quite knowledgable, black tea is good in the fall to help the body warm up and adjust to the seasons, yet another reason to enjoy a couple or three cups of it a day as the leaves fall and the weather cools.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuXLz3xgXXI/AAAAAAAAAQw/M6-2a08i9LE/s1600-h/IMG_1494.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuXLz3xgXXI/AAAAAAAAAQw/M6-2a08i9LE/s320/IMG_1494.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396943820478766450" border="0" /></a>I drink a fair amount of tea, but it's sort of a seasonal thing. I'm also a tea snob (much like I'm a coffee snob). I recommend loose leaf, good quality tea, which can be a bit hard to find. A decent brand you might consider is <a href="http://www.adagio.com/">Adagio</a>. I usually try to stay away from tea bags (filled with "floor sweepings"), but if you're into that kind of thing, Newman's Own "Royal Tea" isn't terribly bad (and is pretty good for the price and being organic). They are quicker and easier, and we usually have them on hand (for the kids or making kombucha), so they get used quite often when I'm in a hurry. They also make a more "proper" British cup since I've noticed that many Brits seem to prefer "crap tea," a term courtesy of a dear Scottish friend of mine. My high-falutin' Assam from a single estate that I served him once was "nice, but a little too uppity" for him, which is really saying something if you know this guy.<br /><br />The secret of my success in making a super-delicious, perfectly enjoyable cup of black tea around this time of the year is to flavor it a little: a splash of half and half, a half tablespoon of turbinado (hippy sugar) (I make my tea in 12oz. mugs), and a dash of <a href="http://www.epicurefoodscorp.com/component/page,shop.product_details/flypage,shop.flypage/product_id,1046/category_id,17/manufacturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,59/">Rieme caramel syrup</a>: "for flavoring coffee." The trick is to use <span style="font-style: italic;">just a dash</span> of the stuff, otherwise it becomes rapidly cloying and almost irritating, more like candy than a pleasant beverage. These, though, are definitely the best flavored syrups I've come across. Most, in fact, are pretty bad in my opinion, and this stuff is fantastic.<br /><br />By the way, this stuff is fantastic in coffee too, so if you can get some, then you should.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-61100138665066247142009-10-23T17:52:00.004-04:002009-10-23T18:17:59.120-04:00Product Review: The Fresh Market's Double-Cream White Chocolate MilkBehold the beauty of <a href="http://www.thefreshmarket.com/">The Fresh Market's</a> Double-Cream White Chocolate Milk, one of the greatest ideas to ever hit the market, if you ask me.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuIp8qcSUzI/AAAAAAAAAQg/IeoYZGOKQfM/s1600-h/IMG_1479.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuIp8qcSUzI/AAAAAAAAAQg/IeoYZGOKQfM/s320/IMG_1479.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395921425705095986" border="0" /></a>This stuff is naughty good. It's decadence in a glass. You'll probably want to have a seat before you have your first taste of it, and then you have to face the ultimate challenge of not downing it all in one go (which, I can tell you from experience, makes you feel very bad). It's delicious almost beyond words: like melted ice cream without the gross factor in a subtle, lovely, rich white chocolate flavor. This stuff is genius, perfect, and altogether bad for you in all ways except that it nourishes spots in your soul that you just love to nourish. How naughty good is it? Well...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuIqDpBaI8I/AAAAAAAAAQo/MtrcEsPK0GQ/s1600-h/IMG_1480.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/SuIqDpBaI8I/AAAAAAAAAQo/MtrcEsPK0GQ/s320/IMG_1480.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395921545583010754" border="0" /></a>...that naughty good. Observe the high sugar content (as high as soft drinks). Mmm.... Observe also the high fat content (higher than half and half... that must be what they mean by "double cream"). Calories, high. Fiber, low. Cholesterol, not good. All this goes together to make: perfect, in small doses. On the other hand, it is relatively high in protein, Vitamin A, and calcium, although I feel a little bit guilty for wanting to say that this is possibly the "ideal source for those nutrients," mostly because of all of the not-good-for-you filling that bottle with beautiful goodness.<br /><br />So, in taste and experience, this stuff gets an 11 out of 10 on my meaningless scale of quality, but in healthiness, it scores a bit lower at about a -2. Then again, you could always drink lots of water and work out hard and regularly, and then it wouldn't matter so much....<br /><br />If you haven't had this stuff and have access to a The Fresh Market that happens to be carrying it (they only seem to have it sometimes, though their good ol' fashioned (whole) chocolate milk is rather beautiful too), then you <span style="font-style: italic;">have</span> to try it.<br /><br />For what it's worth, it makes just about the best white chocolate mochaccino that I've ever had, as long as you're making it with <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/coffee-review-vienna-coffee-companys.html">decent</a> <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/vienna-coffee-company-espresso-bella.html">espresso</a> from <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com">a good coffee source</a>. So rich... so delicious... so romantic with my wife in the mornings and sometimes afternoons.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-86168249372506460772009-10-21T12:36:00.003-04:002009-10-21T12:54:47.071-04:00A Chinese Invention Dish: Steak and Eggs with Homemade PastaI'm almost sorry for posting yet another <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/search/label/Asian">Chinese dish</a>, but like I was doing earlier with the bread making, I'm completely into making these dishes again. I've made <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/07/jbs-beef-and-potato-stew.html">JB's beef and potatoes</a> a couple of times, in fact, in the past two weeks, and that says nothing of these noodle-based dishes that are quite filling and excitingly delicious, particularly now that I'm feeling more adventurous. This installment's adventure is based on a favorite breakfast of a Scottish friend of mine: steak and eggs, but I made it for dinner and following the rough idea of JB's fried dishes.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/St850GXqx_I/AAAAAAAAAQQ/21goazZG1XY/s1600-h/IMG_1425.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/St850GXqx_I/AAAAAAAAAQQ/21goazZG1XY/s320/IMG_1425.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395094445839009778" border="0" /></a>This recipe used the other half of the beef roast that I used to make <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/chinese-beef-cubes-and-mushrooms-with.html">this yumminess</a>, which by paying attention to the dates, you'll realize implies that I made this dish about a week ago. It incorporated a lot of noodles (because the last dish I made used too few), a recipe for which can be found <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/07/jbs-beef-and-leek-with-homemade-noodles.html">here</a>, scaled up to about three cups of flour and a cup of water (and still 11 gallons of elbow grease). Here's what all went into it other than the noodles:<br /><ul><li>Approximately a pound of beef shoulder roast, in half-inch cubes (steak could be used instead);</li><li>3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed (first) and finely chopped;</li><li>1/2 an inch of fresh ginger, finely chopped;</li><li>1/2 a sweet onion, chopped;</li><li>6-8 mushrooms, halved and chopped;</li><li>3 eggs, salted, peppered lightly, and beaten in a bowl;</li><li>a healthy dash of red wine vinegar;</li><li>2 tablespoons of soy sauce;<br /></li><li>2-3 tablespoons of canola oil for cooking.</li></ul>After getting everything prepared and a pot of salted water boiling for the pasta, I started cooking the eggs first. I simply poured them into the hot wok and scrambled them until they were just short of being "dry." Once that was done, I transferred the eggs to a plate to await the completion of the dish. The onions and mushrooms were next, which I added to a re-oiled, re-heated wok and, once salted lightly, let cook until they were soft. Actually, I let them cook, stirring only occasionally, until I had shaved all of the pasta into the boiling water. Once the pasta was shaved, i.e. when the veggies were done, I transferred them to the plate with the eggs to await the meat. A little more oil in the wok, which I gave a quick chance to reheat a little, preceded the meat, garlic, and ginger along with a little salt and pepper for the meat. I stirred this around until the meat was browned on all sides, and then I added the soy sauce and vinegar. While that stewed, I drained the pasta and then immediately added the eggs and vegetables mixture to the wok and stirred everything together. When mixed, I let it cook for about a minute before adding the pasta, mixing, adjusting the seasoning. That was it. Done. Pretty much perfect.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-70618188445080106842009-10-20T19:37:00.003-04:002009-10-20T20:56:38.326-04:00Monster Burritos for Fourteen!One of my friends just turned 30, and so his wife and several of his friends decided it would be fitting to have a little birthday party for him (at an indoor water park, no less!) last Friday. My wife and I were invited and decided to go, and everything looked very promising for offering a great time. The only thing that wasn't settled at least a couple of weeks ahead of time was what we'd be doing about dinner. I suggested that we should make a roast or a huge amount of spaghetti (or both!) because it would be cheaper and more fun than everyone going out, and so in the process, my title "Untrained Gourmet" preceding me, I got hired to make something good. I decided on mega-sized, super-delicious pork burritos because of the overwhelming crowd-pleasing ability of burritos, particularly huge, sloppy, delicious ones. Here's mine, just before I tried to wrap it up and eat it, on a tortilla that easily measures fourteen or fifteen inches across (and that is flavored with chili!).<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/St5KkRBPepI/AAAAAAAAAQI/dCuiI-faxPo/s1600-h/MegaBurrito.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/St5KkRBPepI/AAAAAAAAAQI/dCuiI-faxPo/s320/MegaBurrito.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394831390540790418" border="0" /></a>Apparently, folks raved about them. Some of the things I heard were about three or four variations on "That was seriously the best burrito I've ever had." and "Thanks for your gourmet expertise this weekend. Everyone raved about it after you left and all day Saturday. A great time was had by all." Well... that's what burritos are good for.<br /><br />This was a bit of a monument for me, honestly, since I've never had to cook for more than 10 before in one go, so it was a little bit exciting and a little bit scary and a little bit trial, experiment, and error. There were three dishes: the meat filling for the burritos, some black beans (I say for the burritos, though I guess they could have been a side), and Spanish rice (again, I say for the burritos, though I originally intended them as a side). The entire undertaking was rather epic! Remember, this recipe feeds 12-15 hungry adults.<br /><br />Meat filling and sauce:<br /><ul><li>A five pound pork (or beef) roast -- I used pork loin;</li><li>2 1/2 sweet onions, halved and sliced thinly;</li><li>8-10 medium-to-large cloves of garlic, crushed and finely chopped;</li><li>1 large can of <a href="http://www.muirglen.com/products/product_detail.aspx?cat=5&amp;upc=7-25342-29043-7">fire-roasted tomatoes</a>;</li><li>6 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped;</li><li>2 thinly sliced fresh (red) cayenne peppers (more, optionally, for more heat);</li><li>6 Nardello (or other sweet, red peppers), seeded and roughly chopped;</li><li>2 tsp. whole (or freshly ground) cumin seeds;</li><li>Several sprigs each fresh thyme and (Mexican) oregano, finely chopped;</li><li>4-6 bay leaves;</li><li>Zest and juice of half a lime, grated or very finely chopped;</li><li>1 tbsp. brown sugar or molasses;</li><li>2-3 tbsp. red wine or apple cider vinegar;</li><li>Salt and black pepper to taste</li></ul>As for the tortillas to serve it on, if you can get the giant, delicious ones that are available at EarthFare (sorry, I cannot recall the brand, but they come in a wide variety of flavors including chili and sun dried tomato), then get those. Otherwise, get other flour tortillas, as large as you like, or for a crowd, in a variety of sizes. We had three sizes, including the super-giants pictured above.<br /><br />How to make it:<br />Start out by seasoning the meat with salt, pepper, and ground cumin, and then sear it in a relatively hot Dutch oven or other large pan. Remove the meat from the pan and set it aside and add some oil and the onions and fresh sweet peppers (Nardellos for me). Cook them until the onions are translucent, and then add the bay leaves, cumin seeds, cayenne, garlic, tomatoes with their liquid, and the vinegar and deglaze the pot, scraping up as much of the gramines (delicious burned-on meat bits) as you can. Then add the lime zest and chipotles, stir well, and put the meat back in, wiggling it so that it is mostly covered with the liquid. Resist the temptation to add more water. It will be okay. Salt and pepper everything lightly and let it come to a boil; then reduce the heat to low, cover it most of the way, and let it cook until the pork is quite tender (probably three or four hours -- having access to an indoor water park is helpful for this stage, though keep things on the very low if you're leaving a cooking pot unattended). *Alternatively, skip the searing/sauteing parts and just put everything in a big-enough crockpot, set to high unti it boils and then to low until it's done.* Once the meat is to pulling-tender, remove it from the pan and add in the freshly chopped herbs, sugar/molasses, and adjust the seasoning with a little salt and pepper. Allow the sauce to continue to cook, uncovered and preferably over somewhat higher heat so it reduces somewhat, while you let the meat rest and then pull and cut it apart. Once it is pulled, add the meat back into the sauce, mix thoroughly, and reduce the heat to low to await serving. Just before serving, add the lime juice.<br /><br />For the black beans:<br />If you want to be a rockstar, use about two cups of dried beans and soak/cook them until tender according to the package instructions. Then set them aside and use as instructed below. Otherwise, use canned beans. We used six cans of black beans and had only a little left over.<br /><ul><li>6 cans of beans, all black or with some pintos mixed in (at most 2 cans of pintos), thoroughly rinsed;</li><li>One sweet onion, chopped medium-fine;</li><li>Two bell peppers, chopped likewise;</li><li>A couple of tablespoons of your favorite not-crazy-hot hot sauce;</li><li>Salt and pepper to taste;</li><li>Half a stick of butter and a little oil for cooking.</li></ul>Start out by preparing and then sauteing the onion and peppers in the oil and butter. Once they've softened considerably (and even caramelized on the edges somewhat), add everything else and stir. Cook over medium in this way for a few minutes until the beans are all warmed through, which takes roughly 5 minutes or so. Try to time this to finish around the same time as the meat, which is most easily accomplished by having someone else pull the meat apart. Assistants are great.<br /><br />The rice, which we overdid, but if people are hungry or like Spanish rice on the side, then this will work great. I'll put up what I actually made for posterity's sake, but feel encouraged to half this recipe in practice since we ended up with plenty of left over rice (which is a fantastic ingredient, by the way, in scrambled eggs the next morning!). This is the proper pinkish-reddish-orangish "Spanish" (read: Mexican) rice made properly from scratch.<br /><ul><li>Four cups of white, long-grain rice;</li><li>Half a sweet onion, finely chopped;</li><li>3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed and finely chopped;</li><li>1 large can of crushed, fire-roasted tomatoes with liquid;</li><li>Half a stick of butter;</li><li>1 tsp. whole cumin seeds (or the equivalent, freshly ground);</li><li>4 bay leaves;</li><li>A little finely chopped fresh (Mexican) oregano;</li><li>3-4 tablespoons hot sauce;</li><li>A heavy dash of Worcestershire sauce;<br /></li><li>Salt and pepper to taste;</li><li>Enough water to mix with the tomatoes and their juice so that the total quantity of liquid is as specified on the package cooking directions (usu. 8 cups, or generally, two cups of water per cup of dry rice). NOTE: If you missed it -- measure the water, tomatoes, and juice together or you're going to have some soggy, not good rice.<o:p> </o:p></li></ul>Doing this stuff right isn't hard, but it isn't a freebie. You have to start by toasting the rice in a hot pan (the pan you'll cook it in). This requires moving the rice around pretty much the whole time while it's on a fairly high temperature, and it takes several minutes that cannot be used for anything else. When the rice is getting nicely toasted (it gets all extra white and some of the grains get a little golden), add the cumin seeds and bay leaves and continue this dry-toasting for about thirty more seconds or perhaps a minute. Next, add the butter, onion, and garlic, and continue swirling the rice mixture around in the pan. It will start to sizzle, and that's what you want. This should continue until the butter more or less melts, which takes about 2-3 minutes. Then, add the water, tomatoes with juice, hot sauce, oregano, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper and stir. Let the mixture come to a boil and cook on that relatively high heat for 2-3 minutes. Then reduce the heat immediately to low (on an electric burner that means you have to use two eyes or plan ahead knowing how your electric range works with heating and cooling times... kind of a pain) and cover the pot. Leave it this way until the time period stated on the package directions (probably 20 minutes) has elapsed. At that point, turn off the heat (remove it from the burner if electric) and leave it alone until you're ready to serve it. You can fluff and mix it just before serving. Again, plan ahead and try to time this to be finishing around the same time as everything else.<br /><br />Once it's done, get out some tortillas and add some sides. The recommended list includes, but is not limited to:<br /><ul><li>Freshly grated lettuce (iceberg is popular);</li><li>Diced tomatoes (2 is probably enough);</li><li>Finely diced sweet and/or spring onions (1/2 of a medium onion is enough);</li><li>Some kind of Mexican blend, Monterrey Jack, Colby, cheddar, etc., cheese, freshly shredded if you have the time and manpower;</li><li>Sliced, pickled jalapenos;</li><li>Salsa, though not much will see action due to the sauce with the meat;</li><li>Hot sauce;</li><li>Sour cream or Mexican creme, optionally enhanced with some freshly grated lime zest;</li><li>Guacamole (preferably homemade);</li><li>Whatever else you like on burritos.</li></ul>A good time will be had by all... guaranteed!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-63201930502256672862009-10-15T09:47:00.002-04:002009-10-15T12:05:04.910-04:00Coffee Review: Vienna Coffee Company's Thunderhead EspressoI haven't yet met Jaimie, the owner of <a href="http://www.thunderheadperk.net/">Thunderhead Perk</a> in Townsend, TN, but hopefully I will be meeting her this week. My wife adores her and claims her scones are the best. <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com">Vienna Coffee Company</a> in Maryville, TN, came up with an espresso blend for Jaimie that they fittingly call <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com/p-333-organic-thunderhead-espresso.aspx">Thunderhead Espresso (organic)</a> that happens to be quite delicious regardless of whether it is served alongside one of Jaimie's apparently legendary, warmed scones.<br /><br />Their website claims that the blend is rich, which I think is a bit of an understatement. The smell, in fact, carries the very definition of rich coffee, and the flavor is full, balanced, and mild, like a pleasant riff of smooth jazz on a double bass. Vienna recommends that this espresso is great almost any way you can serve it: straight shots or blended into a latte (or cappuccino), and I tend to agree. It's nice straight, but in my opinion, it stands out blended. That could be because I just came off their <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/10/vienna-coffee-company-espresso-bella.html">Espresso Bella</a>, which is undeniably nice to have in a wide variety of ways.<br /><br />If you're into espresso blends, however you like to take them (even brewed as coffee instead of as espresso), this one is a nice one that I have to recommend, particularly if you like them smooth and easy without ostentation or fuss.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-66458772785120130812009-10-11T14:00:00.002-04:002009-10-11T14:16:40.329-04:00(Chinese) Beef Cubes and Mushrooms with Red Wine Sauce and Homemade PastaI think of this recipe as being a bit inspired since I had a picture in my head from the outset and then did two things differently from that grand vision.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/StIdgvELM1I/AAAAAAAAAQA/jRA_BVlsVOg/s1600-h/IMG_1424.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/StIdgvELM1I/AAAAAAAAAQA/jRA_BVlsVOg/s320/IMG_1424.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391404152142902098" border="0" /></a>I wanted to make a beef and mushroom stir-fry with noodles again, and when I saw a good deal on a nice oven roast at the grocery store the other night, I was almost giddy with excitement. Yesterday, I got the opportunity to start cooking it up. My original plan had been to make something nearly identical to a <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/08/beef-steak-and-mushroom-stir-fry-with.html">previous recipe</a>, but variety, or at least variation, is really the spice of life, and inspiration hit me <span style="font-style: italic;">as I was making it</span>.<br /><br />With Asian cooking, it's a wonderful idea to get everything arranged before you start because the stir-frying process is fast an furious. That means, since I wanted to make noodles, that my first step was to salt some water and start it on its road toward boiling, and my second step was to get the ingredients cut up. Here's what went into this:<br /><ul><li>About a pound of beef roast, cut into half-inch cubes;</li><li>Eight or ten nice shiitake mushrooms, trimmed of their stems and sliced thinly;</li><li>Six large white mushrooms, halved and sliced thinly;</li><li>Four medium cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped finely (first);</li><li>About half an inch of ginger sliced across and then into thin matchsticks;</li><li>Six spring onions, cleaned and chopped cross-sectionally including much of the greens;</li><li>Most of one fresh, red cayenne pepper, sliced thinly;<br /></li><li>About a tablespoon of soy sauce;</li><li>About two or three tablespoons of a rich, table-worthy red wine;</li><li>About a tablespoon of red wine vinegar;</li><li>Salt and black pepper to taste;</li><li>Two or three tablespoons of peanut or canola oil for cooking;<br /></li><li>One small recipe (about two cups of flour worth) of homemade shaved pasta (a recipe is <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/09/funghi-e-porco-raso-con-il-pesto-e.html">here</a>).</li></ul>Once the water was heating, I chopped up all of the veggies except the spring onions (sorry, no pictures -- I couldn't find the camera until after I finished cooking!) and put them on a plate. Then I cut the beef and and spring onions and let them wait on the cutting board while I made the pasta dough. By then, the water was boiling and I had put the oil in my wok over high heat and let it get very hot. The veggies went in first, with a little salt and pepper, and sizzled and fried until they were getting soft. Meanwhile, I shaved the pasta dough into the boiling water with my freshly sharpened chef's knife.<br /><br />After stirring and tossing the veggies and letting the mushrooms reduce in volume rather dramatically (about 5 minutes, probably), I took them out of the pan and put them back on their plate to wait. Once I let the wok get properly hot again (about a minute), I put the beef and onions in with a little more salt and black pepper, freshly ground, of course. Just a little stirring of that happened before the noodles were done cooking, so I drained those.<br /><br />When the beef was approximately 2/3 of the way to being done (probably just two or three minutes), I added the soy sauce, wine, and vinegar, stirring things through, waited about thirty or forty seconds for some of the alcohol to boil off and flavors to mingle, and then I added the mushrooms back in. Another minute or minute and a half later, the meat was just finished, so I turned off the heat to the wok and added the noodles to the pan (going strictly against the traditional way of enjoying noodle-based Chinese food and not worrying about it at all). After a little stir and a little rest for the dish, I took the above picture and then dug in. It was absolutely fantastic!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-73366717023785428142009-10-08T21:10:00.002-04:002009-10-08T21:45:05.251-04:00Vienna Coffee Company: Espresso BellaHere's another review of a flavor of <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com/">Vienna Coffee Company</a> coffee, the one that I just finished enjoying several times in the mornings and afternoons: <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com/p-332-espresso-bella.aspx">Espresso Bella</a>.<br /><br />When I <a href="http://untrainedgourmet.blogspot.com/2009/09/coffee-commentary-vienna-coffee.html">visited the company</a> a couple of weeks ago, I picked up this one along with the very delicious and yet interesting Organic Balinese Blue Krishna mentioned in that post (follow the link). I was told that "if I like pulling shots and just drinking them straight up, this was a great way to go." I don't exactly pull shots, as you all know, because I don't have a real espresso machine, but that didn't deter me from making it both in the Moka and in the Aeropress. My first experience, actually, came from the Moka, and my first impressions (which I'm glad I wrote down) were very pleasant: full, round flavors with a hint of toastiness and a little smokiness, properly understated. Even from the Moka, I recognized immediately the overwhelming smoothness of this espresso blend also.<br /><br />In the Aeropress, which makes a slightly flatter, certainly less "cooked" tasting coffee than the moka, this coffee stood out as being very well balanced and wonderfully flavorful. It did a better job than many of the varietals and blends that I've tried at being equally pleasant (as cappuccino or "presso," what I call the concentrated coffee that comes out of the Aeropress) as a morning or afternoon cup, and so there were many days while I enjoyed this stuff that I enjoyed it twice a day. My wife was duly impressed by the flavorfulness of this coffee as well.<br /><br />I think this is an outstanding espresso blend, actually, and I think I recommend it over the <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com/p-331-espresso-con-robusta-little-river-style.aspx">Espresso con Robusta, Little River Style</a> that I also like a great deal, should buy again, and should review for you. At the moment, I'm lucky enough to be working on (and will write about soon!) some <a href="http://www.viennacoffeecompany.com/p-333-organic-thunderhead-espresso.aspx">Organic Thunderhead Espresso</a>, a blend worked out for my wife's friend Jaimie at <a href="http://www.thunderheadperk.net/">Thunderhead Perk</a> in Townsend, TN, a great coffee shop that my wife and step-daughters went to today while I was at work (though I'll find my way there sometime soon). Stay tuned for those reviews when I have time to talk about them: two more espressos and hopefully a coffee shop.Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737934969794193905.post-16206364797394765072009-10-06T20:17:00.004-04:002009-10-06T20:54:22.674-04:00Lamb and Barley Soup with a Parmesian Portabello SnackFirst thing's first: I can't believe I forgot to take a picture of this wonderful stew when it was finished. Unfortunately, I can't show you the finished product, so we'll consider the cooking pictures to be teasers. I assure you, it looked like beef and barley soup is supposed to look only the beef was lamb, and it was spectacularly good.<br />The ingredient list is kind of long, so here's what all went into it:<br /><ul><li>About a quarter of a leg of lamb with bone (probably about a pound and a half of meat);</li><li>Three medium carrots, cut into quarters lengthwise and then into half-inch pieces;</li><li>Four small potatoes, cut into pieces of a similar size to the carrots;</li><li>One medium sweet onion, cut similarly;</li><li>Four cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped finely (and first);</li><li>Two red and one green Nardello pepper (mostly to use them, leave out or substitute any sweet pepper), chopped;</li><li>One red cayenne pepper, chopped finely;</li><li>Two stalks of celery, cut lengthwise four times and sliced rather thinly;</li><li>Eight white mushrooms, cleaned and quartered;</li><li>Half a cup of hulled barley (pearled is a fine substitute);</li><li>Two tablespoons Job's tears (optional);</li><li>Two tablespoons wild rice;</li><li>Two tablespoons brown rice (note: the rices are optional, but in Chinese medicine, mixing rice and barley is supposed to be very building to the system, so I usually include them in tandem when I can);</li><li>Four bay leaves;<br /></li><li>Salt, freshly ground black pepper, Worchestershire sauce, and red wine vinegar to taste;</li><li>A long sprig of fresh rosemary and a handful of chives, finely chopped;<br /></li><li>One bottle of beer (preferably something heavy and malty);</li><li>Four and a half cups of water;</li><li>Two to three tablespoons canola oil.<br /></li></ul><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve7_IzDYI/AAAAAAAAAPI/WZNrwnKcHtU/s1600-h/IMG_1316.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve7_IzDYI/AAAAAAAAAPI/WZNrwnKcHtU/s200/IMG_1316.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389646501220912514" border="0" /></a>Here are all of the veggies cut up and ready to go. It's very helpful to have all of your ingredients prepared well ahead of time, although with a stew, I suppose it's not so important. I'm just in the habit, I guess. Having them this way is very helpful, however, if you want to saute the veggies first and deglaze the pan, which I usually do but didn't for this dish.<br />As for preparing it, I started with the lamb going into the oil and browning a little on each side. Once that was achieved, I put all of these lovely veggies except the garlic into the pan and stirred it around so that as much of it as possible got some pan time, although I wasn't aiming for perfection. After a couple of minutes, I added the garlic, bay leaves, and the beer. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve8VbBXXI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/yqvR6KyxmRI/s1600-h/IMG_1317.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve8VbBXXI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/yqvR6KyxmRI/s200/IMG_1317.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389646507202927986" border="0" /></a>Once that was in, I added the water and the grain along with a healthy amount of red wine vinegar. When all of that was in the pot, I stirred, covered the pot, and left it alone for about twenty minutes. Then I lowered the temp and added the herbs, by which point it looked like this. Right about then is when I was really starting to get hungry, and so while this did its thing, covered over medium-low heat, I whipped up a snack on the side for my wife and I: portabello mushrooms with herbs and balsamic vinegar, finished with a little Parmesian cheese (freshly grated reggiano, of course).<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve8yckI9I/AAAAAAAAAPY/UoEO_Sm67yQ/s1600-h/IMG_1318.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve8yckI9I/AAAAAAAAAPY/UoEO_Sm67yQ/s200/IMG_1318.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389646514994029522" border="0" /></a>We ate those, mmm, and other than coming back to stir the pot occasionally, that was done and out of mind. I considered making a hearty, whole-wheat flatbread but decided against it figuring I wasn't feeding an army. It would have went perfectly with the soup, though!<br /><br />A couple of hours later, there was something else to do: get the meat out of the stew and cut it up into little bite-sized pieces. I opted to cut it, instead of pulling it, because that way I could choose to go across the grain and have much more tender little morsels in there. The pieces, actually, were on par with those from the carrots and potatoes in size. It looked like this, in fact, just before I put it back into the stew:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve9Ds9m4I/AAAAAAAAAPg/w8VBa8tRp8U/s1600-h/IMG_1319.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_elD1j9PV_OA/Ssve9Ds9m4I/AAAAAAAAAPg/w8VBa8tRp8U/s200/IMG_1319.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389646519626210178" border="0" /></a><br />To finish, I let the little meat bits cook in the stew for a while and get nice and saturated with the liquid. That also gave the barley, potatoes, and rice enough time to start to disintegrate a little, offering their starch into the broth to make it into a more gravy-like consistency. Finally, of course, I adjusted the seasoning (salt, pepper, and vinegar) and the served it in bowls. If more people had been around, freshly made flatbreads or (better) some nice crusty sourdough would have made the meal absolutely perfect. The lamb really gives it a nice touch being just a tad on the gamey side of red meat flavors, though not nearly so strong as venison (which makes an awesome stew of this sort also, hunters!).<br /><br />You should try it, especially as the weather starts to turn a bit cooler like this. It's really wonderful!Jimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13438294201076435674noreply@blogger.com0